Yale moves family weekend online
In a departure from previous plans, Yale shared in an update to their events website that family weekend will take place entirely virtually.
Yale News
Family weekend, a three-day event that typically allows parents to visit their children on campus, will be held virtually this fall, according to an update to Yale’s events website. Dean of Yale College Marvin Chun also announced the change in emails to students and parents on Friday morning.
Yale College had previously planned to hold a hybrid family weekend with “both in-person and virtual offerings (for those unable to travel)” from Oct. 8 through Oct. 10, according to a previous version of the website. But as of Thursday evening, an update to the event’s webpage shared that all family weekend festivities would occur remotely due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
“Family weekend, which will be held online as a precaution during the COVID-19 pandemic, begins Friday, October 8, and ends Sunday, October 10, 2021,” the website reads. “All the virtual events and recordings will be accessible via the schedule link below closer to the event start date.”
In his emails, Chun emphasized that the shift is a precaution: “Yale’s positivity rates are very low, and this precaution is intended to increase the chances that they will stay low.” He also hopes that people “will understand and support this change” and participate in the virtual activities, which will not require advance registration.
University representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A schedule for the weekend has not yet been released, but the event website states that the weekend will feature virtual residential college receptions, panels by Yale students, tours of galleries and libraries and more.
As of Friday morning, Yale’s academic calendar has not been updated and reads, “Yale College opens its doors to families and friends and invites everyone to attend the dozens of events planned around campus and throughout New Haven.”
Family weekend is held annually each year in October. It was held virtually in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Update, Sept. 10, 10:14 a.m.: A previous version of this article stated that as of Thursday night, no announcement of the change had been sent to the Yale community. The story has been updated to include Chun’s Friday morning announcement of the change in emails to students and parents.